Laura Henshaw, Fan Contributor

June 16/15 I’ve written several times about Dale Jr’s appreciation for the history of the sport. His appreciation of history stretches beyond NASCAR into family ancestry. Several years ago, Dale started to research the genealogy of the Earnhardt name. He tracked down some grave sites of distant relatives, but then hit a dead end in the US. He promised himself he would take a trip to Germany by the time he turned 40 to continue his research. That’s what he plans to do during the upcoming off week. Admitting this weekend that he hasn’t flown on a commercial airline since before 9/11, we’re all anxiously awaiting his reports of international air travel. I’m certain he’ll be fine, traveling in first class with girlfriend Amy Reimann, sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller, brother-in-law L.W. Miller, and long time friend and JRMotorsports employee Martin Friedrich. His family is traveling with him to help find and appreciate the ancestry. Martin, though, is from Germany and is going to help keep the Earnhardt party out of trouble. Martin might have his hands full!

Image Credit: @LSHenshaw

In completely unrelated news, Dale introduced his fans to cupcake sushi: designer cupcakes decorated to look like sushi. Seemingly lost in translation, some fans mistakenly thought they were fish cupcakes. I’m glad they aren’t, because these little masterpieces look delicious! You can order your own from the Key West company.

Image Credit: @DaleJr

Race RecapDale qualified for the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway in P14, continuing, what he even admits, are mediocre qualifying attempts. As soon as crew chief Greg Ives, Dale, and the crew find that missing piece of the qualifying puzzle, I’m confident the 88 team will start in the top 10 and top 5 again. Until then, Dale gets to practice passing as many cars as possible, as he did after the green flag flew at Michigan moving from P14 to inside the top 10 within just the first 11 laps. Rain took the track very early into the race, forcing an hour long rain delay. After the track was readied, the cars couldn’t even make it to the lap 35 competition caution before rain fell again and forced another red flag rain delay. It’s not often we get to see Dale on his own pit box during a race, alas here he is getting suited back up to hop in the car again.

Image Credit: @Hendrick88Team

The track was dried once again, allowing the cars to make it to the new competition caution lap of 40. Dale pitted in P6 and was able to get as high as P2 before the red flag came out for rain yet again on lap 45. Once the track was prepped once more, Dale was able to enjoy a long green flag run and raced inside the top 10, using the in-car track bar adjuster to help him dial in the car and gain track position. After a green flag pit stop on lap 83, Dale continued to advance his position thanks to the air pressure and wedge adjustments.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Dale raced as high as P2 before Mother Nature opened the skies above the track for a final time. The last red flag halted the race at lap 138, finalizing the P2 finishing position for the AMP Energy Passion Fruit Chevrolet. The finish marks Dale’s eighth top five finish in fifteen starts. Dale also advanced one spot in the drivers’ points standings to fourth with 508 points. He’s only 68 points behind leader Kevin Harvick.

June 10/15 A new month brings a new set of racing gloves and awareness for another great cause. During the month of June, Dale will wear gray Alpinestars skeleton gloves in support of pediatric brain cancer awareness. At the end of the month The Dale Jr Foundation will auction off the signed race-worn gloves. Bidding for May’s gloves in the Foundation’s ebay store recently concluded. The auction raised nearly $5000 for the many charities Dale’s foundation supports, along with awareness of Osteogenesis Imperfecta. Dale puts the work of the foundation at the top of his achievements list, as he should. I love watching him use his celebrity to help others. The gray gloves will look a lot like this pair from the 2015 Daytona 500, but in the appropriate color.

Image Credit: @tdjf

Kasey Kahne is not only a Hendrick Motorsports teammate, but also a part time driver of one of Dale’s XFINITY teams at JR Motorsports. While Kasey was out doing what drivers do at the track, he snapped a selfie of his best Dale Jr. impression. The resemblance was close enough for Dale to jokingly request Kasey fill in for him at the two upcoming road courses at Sonoma and Watkins Glen. What do you think?

Image Credit: @kaseykahne

It’s no secret that Dale likes to get outside and play; he’s well known for the paintball battles he has on his property in North Carolina. Therefore, it’s no surprise that he set up an epic battle between his 88 team and HMS teammate Jimmie Johnson’s 48 team at Skirmish in the Poconos. Skirmish claims to have the world’s largest paintball fields totaling 700 acres across 50 different courses. It isn’t clear which team won overall, but Jimmie Johnson did announce on social media that Dale had the upper hand. Not one to miss an opportunity to rib a buddy, Dale claimed his spotter T.J. Majors was wearing more layers than mountain climbers in the Himalayas. T.J. was simply well prepared and probably the least bruised member on either team.

Image Credit: @dalejr

Race RecapDale headed to the tricky triangle of Pocono Raceway with the rare opportunity to win a third consecutive race, as has been done only twice before by Bobby Allison in 1982-83 and Tim Richmond in 1986-87. On the subject, Dale said, “It seems like guys that run well at Pocono can sustain it. I've seen guys sweep there and we were able to do it last year. I like the track, and we have run well there since the repave. I anticipate us being competitive again and hopefully getting three in a row.” Dale mentioned he wasn’t very happy racing at Pocono until about five years ago. Since then, he’s more comfortable, as is apparent by his two consecutive wins in 2014.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Dale and other drivers started the weekend very concerned about the tunnel turn bumps in turn 2, which prompted track officials to commit to addressing the issue before the series returns to the track in the fall. Ironically, when asked after the race how the bumps impacted the competition, many drivers were either neutral or even supportive of the bumps. The supportive drivers went so far as to claim the bumps made passing easier in that turn, so they used the opportunity to their advantage. This just goes to show you can’t judge a corner by its bumps, I guess.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Dale qualified for the Axalta We Paint Winners 400 at Pocono Raceway in P20, continuing a streak of mediocre qualifying attempts. The No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet SS was highly competitive, despite the mid pack starting position. Dale was able to pass several cars to race his way into the top five and to a race high second position by lap 74/160. Late race contact on track with Kasey Kahne unfortunately damaged the left rear quarter panel and forced a pit stop under caution to repair the damage and avoid a cut tire. The trip to pit road dropped Dale to P28 on the restart. He displayed the Hendrick power, though, as he passed ten cars in a single lap. In the dwindling laps, Dale was able to climb as high as P11 by the time the checkered flag dropped. The finish maintains Dale’s 5th place position in the points standings.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

The true highlight of the race was watching Dale’s great friend Martin Truex, Jr. win and break his two year winless streak. Seemingly, all of NASCAR celebrated Truex’s victory, as one of the “good guys” finally gets to win one. Dale teased in the post race presser that he’d have all the Capt Morgan rum Truex could want waiting for him back in Moorseville, NC, upon Truex’s return later in the day. Dale’s definitely one to take care of his former roommate and good buddy. He even helped Truex celebrate in Victory Lane by pouring a bottle of Diet Mountain Dew on the race winner.

Image Credit: @DaleJr

Last Lap…Dale’s pup Gus is no accidental pet. When he was a young boy, Dale had another Irish Setter named Rocket. When the time was right, Dale took the opportunity to get another Irish Setter to create even more great Setter memories. Having fun with the two Setters, Dale recreated an old photo he found of himself with Rocket, this time with Gus the Wonderpup!

June 10/15 Normally, in this space you’ll find a general recap of Dale Jr.’s activities during the week between races. This time, we’ll look at what long time girlfriend Amy Reimann has been up to, as well as a triple header weekend for Dale as a team owner and a driver.

Amy is well known by Dale’s fans as his down-to-Earth, level headed girlfriend who manages to pry Dale out of his shell. Connoisseurs of NASCAR history appreciate her respect for the sport’s legends. Amy tends to show that respect visually with her impressive collection of classic and retro NASCAR t-shirts. Like a true collector, she and Dale are constantly on the lookout for another great oldie but goodie. Her most recent shirt shows a 1970’s coiffed Darrell Waltrip in all his 88 Gatorade glory with DiGard racing. Take a look at her new shirt along with a handful of her other great finds.

Image Credit: @DaleJr

Dover kept Dale’s JR Motorsports race teams busy, as they fielded four vehicles over the weekend. In his second race for JRM, Cole Custer piloted the No. 00 HAAS Automation truck in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Custer qualified in 10th, ran strong throughout most of the race, and brought home a 13th place finish. In addition, JRM saw all three cars on track: Regan Smith in the No. 7 Breyers XFINITY car (qual P10, finish P3), Kasey Kahne in the No. 88 Ragu XFINITY car (qual P7, finish P5), and Chase Elliott in the No. 9 NAPA XFINITY car (qual P14, finish P6). JRM enjoyed three top 10 finishes for all three teams in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. Marking a place for himself in the record books, Regan Smith also finished highest in XFINITY’s Dash 4 Cash series, pocketing a cool $100,000 for his efforts. Designed to highlight the unique competition between championship eligible NASCAR XFINITY Series drivers, the highly recognizable program will potentially result in $1 million awarded to one talented driver, according to NASCAR.

Image Credit: @NASCAR

Race RecapThe FedEx 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway is arguably the most grueling race on the NASCAR circuit. The race proves to be a test of endurance, culminating in both physical and mental skill. Dale saw and overcame his share of tests throughout the day.

Staring contest at garage Image credit: @nationwide88

He qualified the No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet SS in P16. However, the team was forced to change the rear gear as a precaution, which caused Dale to forego his starting position and take the green from the tail end of the field. Anytime Dale must start from the back of the pack, fans can rest assured his spotter T.J. Majors will “door, bumper, clear” him up through all the traffic. T.J. did not disappoint. Dale worked his way up to P26 before being lapped on lap 57.

P14 finish Image Credit: @nationwide88

Crew Chief Greg Ives has not shown reluctance to use pit strategy to advance the 88 crew’s position in the race. Ives exercised that talent again in Dover by leaving Dale out on the track through a series of green flag pit stops. As if Ives could see the future, Dale was able to get his lap back when the caution then flew on lap 163. Dale even took the lead as other teams were forced to pit after the 88 team.

Pit stop Image Credit: @nationwide88

Once the other teams cycled through their stops, Dale was in P20 before charging through the field to P8 when another caution flag flew. NASCAR nabbed Dale for speeding on pit road during that caution and mandated a pit road pass through penalty. The penalty caused the team to lose a lap yet again. By the time the checkered flag fell, Dale was a second lap down and in 14th position.

Lap 288 P22 Image Credit: @nationwide88

Dale entered Dover 4th in points standings, and he left in 5th. The top 15 finish snapped Dale’s three top three finish streak. In 31 starts at Dover, he has one win, six top five and 11 top ten finishes. The team looks ahead to Pocono, where Dale will try his hand at a three peat sweep.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Last Lap…As a Dale Jr. fan on the beach in Florida, this particular tweet says it all! #DaleYeah

June 10/15 A relatively relaxing week in North Carolina saw Dale Jr. hanging out at home, participating in a goofy golf club challenge for charity, rallying support for moving the All-Star race to earlier in the day, trading sports memorabilia with Carolina Panther Thomas Davis, and celebrating a JRMotorsports truck series win. He also reached one million followers on Twitter, inviting an onslaught of congratulatory tweets from around the sport. Dale took advantage of the time at home to keep working on his BBQ pitmaster skills with a nice pork tenderloin. While he mastered the BBQ, a five month old Gus looked on longingly. Something tells me he got to gnaw on a rib bone or two. To paraphrase Dale, Gus only wants two things: all the food Dale has and to be wherever Amy is. We haven’t seen Gus in some time, so here’s a gratuitous photo Dale tweeted.

Gus, The Wonderpup
Image Credit: @DaleJr

Dale and Thomas Davis met at Charlotte Motor Speedway mid week for a promotional photo shoot. Davis was slated to drive the pace car for the weekend’s Coca-Cola 600. Davis took some driving lessons from track officials for a few turns of the circuit before moving from the pace car’s driver’s seat to the passenger seat of a Richard Petty Driving Experience No. 88 car with Dale behind the wheel. Dale took the opportunity to toss a football to Davis as Davis made his way to Dale’s car, which proved Dale is much better behind the wheel than handling a football. As a mark of respect for each other as athletes, they traded helmets before climbing into the racecar. Davis recorded all three laps on his phone as Dale got the professional football player as close to the outside wall as possible. Upon their return to pit road, Dale asked Davis to hold up his hand to see if he was at all shaky. Davis was impressively as steady as an oak! Although the experience didn’t sway him away from his Carolina Panthers, Dale admitted he would happily add Davis’ helmet to the collection he has at home.

One NASCAR top series that Dale has never driven in is the Camping World Truck Series. Dale often fields questions from fans and the media about if or when he will get behind the wheel of a truck. Dale’s standard reply is that his schedule is just too packed to squeeze in a third racing series. Until now, maybe. During the offseason, Dale’s race team JRMotorsports put together a truck team with various drivers including Cole Custer piloting the No. 00 Chevrolet HAAS Automation machine. Dale’s dream of finally racing a truck in the CWTS may eventually come to fruition. Until then, he’ll just have to settle with a victory the first time out for the rookie team! With Kasey Kahne behind the wheel, the JRM truck raced to the checkered flag at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the North Carolina Education Lottery 200. Hendrick Motorsports isn’t the only race team with a victory bell. Here’s the JRM victory bell making its celebratory rounds through the race shops.

Image Credit: @DaleJr

Race Recap

NASCAR paid respect to fallen heroes of the US military this Memorial Day weekend by displaying the names of those heroes on the windshields of all the fielded cars for the Coca-Cola 600. Dale had the honor of carrying Medal of Honor recipient Army Staff Sergeant Robert J. Miller’s name on the windshield. Read about SSG Miller and his sacrifice in more detail here.

Image Credit: @NASCAR

Dale qualified the No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet SS car in P15 for the start of the longest race on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule. Using lessons learned the previous week in the Sprint All-Star race, the team gave Dale a nearly perfect setup, with the exception of grip. Crew Chief Greg Ives called for a chassis adjustment on the first pit stop, which improved the car’s handling in the corners. With a happier driver, the No. 88 machine moved from outside the top 15 all the way to the top three by lap 129.

Pushing onto grid Image Credit: @nationwide88

Dale was able to compete within the top five for a majority of the race. In an effort to shuffle the team out of the pit cycle with the other top contenders, Ives agreed with Dale to call for a pit stop on a caution at lap 338 only nine laps after the previous stop. Dale wasn’t able to break into the top 10 during the next 40 laps. Then Ives put Dale into fuel saving mode: 80% throttle for the last 20 laps of the race. That strategy was able to stretch the fuel all the way to the last lap.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

The only thing keeping the 88 team from the second victory of the season was the fuel strategy employed by the two cars ahead of Dale. The fuel gamble landed Dale in 3rd when the checkered flag flew. This marks Dale’s fifth third place finish through 12 races in 2015. That means a top three finish in nearly half the season so far! The 88 crew is showing it's strength thus far, and we hope to see the success continue!

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Last Lap…Dale’s throwback photo this week encapsulates a bit of NASCAR history. Ed Negre, a NASCAR driver and owner from 1955 through 1979, was the first car owner to give Dale Earnhardt, Sr. a ride. Dale Sr. raced Ed’s car in the 1975 World 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The World 600 would eventually become what we know today as the Coca-Cola 600. Ed’s son, Norman, was on hand that day in 1975 as part of the crew. Norman eventually made his way to head of fabrication for Stewart-Haas Racing. Forty years after the photo with Dale Sr. at Charlotte, Norman posed with Dale Jr at the same track working for the sponsor of Dale’s truck team. Stock car racing is already a small world, but for the Earnhardts and Negres, that world is even smaller. Plus, how can you not admire those sideburns?! Tony Stewart could have named his pig, Porkchop, in honor of Norman’s spectacular facial hair!

June 8/15 The weekend prior to the Memorial Day holiday weekend found the top touring stock car series in Charlotte, NC, for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. Drivers look forward to this race for a number of reasons. First, the series stays in Charlotte for two weeks in a row. Charlotte is the home base for most of the top teams in our sport, so a majority of them are able to sleep in their own beds. Also, the All-Star Race is a non points race, so the drivers and teams do not have the same pressures of the regularly scheduled races. Another reason the drivers look forward to this particular race is the unusual format. It’s not the typical race to the checkered flag. The format changes from year to year, but for 2015 the race comprised four separate 25 lap segments prior to a 10 lap shootout to the finish. Perhaps the biggest reason drivers look forward to this race is the grand prize of $1,000,000.

Drivers often run special paint schemes for the All-Star Race. Dale Jr. debuted the Mt. Dew Baja Blast scheme for racing under the lights at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

So, just how do they run the race? The following NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race rules were taken directly from nascar.com:

Segments 1, 2 and 3/25 laps each: All laps will be counted. Optional pit stop during break, teams that pit will not retain their position on track.

Segment 4/25 laps: All laps will be counted. Running order at the completion of the fourth segment will be repositioned based on the average finish of the first four segments. Running order ties will be broken by the finish of the fourth segment. Pit road will be open for a mandatory four tire pit stop. Order of cars returning to the track will determine starting order of the fifth and final segment.

Segment 5/10 laps: Only green flag laps will be counted.

That’s how they run the race, but how are drivers considered eligible? In order to be eligible for the All-Star Race, drivers must meet at least one of several criteria.

Have won a points race in 2014 or 2015

Have won in any previous All-Star Race

Be a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion who had full time ride in 2014

Be a winner of either of the two 20 lap Sprint Showdown segments will advance; the Sprint Showdown is run the night prior to the All-Star Race. The Showdown field is made up of all drivers not currently locked into the All-Star Race.

Be the winner of the Sprint Fan Vote, which allows fans to pick a driver to make the All-Star Race. To be eligible for the 2015 Sprint Fan Vote, the drivers must have attempted to qualify for the 2015 Daytona 500 and must run in the Sprint Showdown.

All-Star Trophy Image Credit: @NASCAR

Race RecapComing into the 2015 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Dale Jr had won the Sprint Showdown (2012), the Sprint Fan Vote (2011), and the Sprint All-Star Race (2000). To date, he is the only driver in the event’s history to have done so. Dale qualified seventh for the start of the first segment. He dominated early and finished the first segment in P3, four positions higher than his starting spot. A miscue on pit road led to a two tire pit stop instead of the needed four tire pit stop between segments. The error ultimately cost Dale, despite his segment two starting place of second. The older left side tires were to blame as Dale dropped back to finish the second segment in P12. A quick four tire pit stop between segments put Dale in P11 for the restart. The team hoped the ill handling No. 88 Mountain Dew Baja Blast Chevrolet SS was due to the prior two tire stop. Alas, no such luck. Dale could not get the car to handle and attempted to run a very high line around Charlotte Motor Speedway. In the attempt to find grip, Dale pancaked the right side of the car in the outside wall on lap seven of the third segment. He ended the segment in P16. Dale restarted from his lowest position during the entire race in P17. He only gained three spots during the fourth segment, but crew chief Greg Ives and Dale used the time wisely by discussing possible changes for the subsequent race at Charlotte. The final segment saw Dale enter the pits in P10, based on his average finishes across the previous segments. The final 10 lap dash saw Dale maintain P10 for the finish. The 88 crew used the All-Star race to experiment with set up and handling at Dale’s home track. They learned some important lessons heading into next week’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Last Lap…The teams at Hendrick Motorsports have a special tradition after a race win: they let every team member ring the Victory Bell as the bell visits the race shops on campus. Here is the Victory Bell ringing for Dale Jr’s Talladega win.

One more thing:NASCAR driver Martin Truex, Jr.’s charity foundation hosts the annual Catwalk for a Cure event to raise money for childhood cancer research. Each year drivers from all around NASCAR come out to help support the cause. The drivers walk the runway with the pint sized cancer patients putting the spotlight on the kids. The event proves to be moving and successful each time The Martin Truex, Jr. Foundation hosts it. Here’s a great photo of little Elijah rocking the catwalk with Dale. It’s not often that someone steals Dale’s thunder, but in this case I’m confident Dale didn’t mind one bit. Rock on, Elijah!

June 8/15 Hiya, NASCAR fans! Long time, no see. Recently I’ve been unable to write timely articles for the Dale Jr. crowd. For that I apologize. If you’re binge reading this page at some point in the future, my “break” will seem fairly transparent (also – hello from the past! Haha), but if you pay attention to the posting dates it will be blatantly obvious. The middle of May is at the tail end of the school year for my kids. They are older now and must deal with serious testing through the last week of classes. Oh, the responsibilities that come with age! In addition to the end of the school year, we’re dealing with the beginning of summer. My Twitter followers are well aware of my family’s frequent weekend camping trips all over the Florida panhandle. Busy busy busy! This month, I will fly with the kids out to the great state of Arizona to visit my folks for a few weeks. If you read my “About Me” post, you’ll know my dad is as big a racing fan as I am. We’ll watch three weekends worth of NASCAR together, which is always a highlight of that trip.

Alas, this is just a quick note to let you know I’m still here, I’m still watching, and I’m still rooting along with #JrNation!!

May 13/15 Sponsor obligations for Hendrick Motorsports and JRMotorsports, in addition to restaurant owner duties kept Dale busy all over the country this week. On Tuesday, Dale flew to Las Vegas as team owner for Chase Elliot and the JRM NAPA team. After spending a few hours signing autographs and taking pictures with fans, Dale hopped back on the plane to return to North Carolina. He landed shortly before dawn on Wednesday and had to be at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport for the grand opening of his second Whiskey River location just after noon. Located in concourse E, the restaurant features a unique layover experience if you find yourself in the area. Do you suppose they used the E concourse location for Earnhardt? We may never know! One thing we do know is they have an entire wall of belt buckles.

Image Credit: @WhiskyRiverCLT

To make sure Dale stayed busy, he then flew to Columbus, Ohio on Thursday to fulfill obligations with his primary Sprint Cup sponsor Nationwide Insurance. He visited the company headquarters, signed autographs, took photos, and then received his own locker, jersey and helmet from the Columbus Blue Jackets, the local hockey team.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Race RecapOooooooh, who lives in a pineapple under the sea? SpongeBob SquarePants, of course! This week’s race was sponsored by Nickelodeon in support of the new SpongeBob movie sequel release. NASCAR, Fox, and Kansas Speedway all did a phenomenal job playing off each other with photos, GIFs, videos, and memes leading up to and during the race. This sport cannot continue without the next generation of fans to support it. What better way to get them involved than appealing to their interests with their favorite cartoon characters?

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Mother Nature wreaked havoc on NASCAR yet again this weekend. Storms were forecast throughout the day with a reprieve around the planned start time, followed, a couple hours later, with more showers. NASCAR was able to start the race, but rain forced a red flag rain delay for just over two hours. The weather moved through the area and allowed the race to resume and conclude at the scheduled distance. Traditionally, NASCAR does not race on Mother’s Day, but this race didn’t conclude until the wee hours of Mother’s Day morning. Alas, it was nice to see the race completed in its entirety.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Dale qualified 17th for the SpongeBob SquarePants Movie 400. He raced inside the top 15 for most of the race before the pending weather brought out the red flag. Dale reported the very loose handling car to crew chief Greg Ives during the rain delay. The team was able to make changes to improve the handling, and Dale found himself with great track position in seventh place near the end of the race when the last caution flew. Drivers who had gambled on fuel mileage were forced to the pits during the caution, while Dale and a few others were able to stay out and gain even more track position. Dale restarted second with only six laps remaining. He lost only one position by the time the checkered flag flew, securing yet another third place finish this season. This is Dale’s sixth top five finish in 11 starts this year. The team maintains fifth place in driver points standings with 360 points total, 77 points behind leader Kevin Harvick. The series heads back to Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Sprint All Star race next.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Last Lap…In honor of Mother’s Day, Dale posted these great photos of himself with his mother Brenda Jackson and his sister Kelley. I hope all the moms had a great day!

May 12/15 Dale stayed fairly busy in between the races at Richmond and Talladega. He started the emotional week with music, which is a common occurrence for him. He shared with fans the song “Fire Lake” by Bob Seger. It is a song that takes him back to a ten year old boy in Kannapolis, NC. A ten year old boy who still had his daddy, obviously. Dale’s nostalgia was understandable, because April 29 would have been Dale Sr’s 64th birthday.

Image Credit: @DaleJr

In addition to sharing photos and memories with fans, Dale received a very special gift himself. Longtime friend Kevin Harvick gave Dale Jr a diecast model of Dale Sr’s racecar from the 1976 World 600. Even better: the diecast was autographed! As a connoisseur of history, Dale Jr was the perfect recipient for such a gift. I’m not sure how he’s going to reciprocate the gesture for Kevin. Perhaps a 'staycation' in Dale’s new treehouse?

Image Credit: @DaleJr

Race RecapThe NASCAR Sprint Cup series descended upon the small city of Talladega, Alabama, for the first of two stops there during the season. Talladega Superspeedway is a special place for the Earnhardts and Earnhardt fans. Like Daytona International Speedway, Talladega is a restrictor plate track. Aerodynamics and drafting are extremely important at these two tracks. The airflow over and around the cars is the key to successful passing. Legend has it that Dale Earnhardt, Sr could see the air around the cars here. Legend also has it Dale Sr passed that ability onto his son. There is no questioning the successes the Earnhardts have had at Talladega: Dale Sr won an impressive 10 times in the Sprint Cup series, while Dale Jr came to Talladega this May with five wins under his belt. Dale Jr was facing an 11 year winless streak, though, with his most recent Talladega win in 2004 when he was still driving for his late father’s team Dale Earnhardt, Inc. No one knows that statistic better than Dale himself. He admitted as much when he told the media he puts even more pressure on himself when he races in Talladega to please the fans, sponsors, owners, etc. He knows there is a legacy with the names Talladega and Earnhardt. Members of his race team have mentioned how low he was after the most recent race in Alabama: Dale purposely raced at the back of the field in the fall 2014 race. He was unable to advance at the end and finished at the back of the pack in a disappointing P31. Dale vowed to never do that again. He realized the cars aren’t able to gain all those spots on the track in a few short laps like they were in the past. He knows the best place to be on track is at the front. Better yet: be in the lead.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

The weekend was just about perfect. Dale qualified in fourth. He ran in the top five most of the day. He even led a race high 67 laps. The most nerve wracking time for fans and the team came when two pieces of trash stuck to the grill of the No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet SS machine as the laps dwindled and Dale led. Temperatures and pressures in the engine were red-lined, but the motor miraculously kept running. Dale took the checkered flag on lap 188, despite a last lap wreck in the middle of the pack.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

After winning the race, Dale chose to forego the display of a victory burnout and opted instead for what’s becoming a signature victory lap for him: the Polish victory lap styled after former NASCAR driving legend Alan Kulwicki. Dale likes to be able to wave at and face the fans with his helmet off to soak in the celebration. Fans appreciate his efforts. In fact, most of the fans in attendance remained in the stands to witness Dale Jr’s victory lane celebration. In the words of Fox Sports announcer and NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip: When Dale Jr wins, everybody is happy!

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Dale even got a bit overwhelmed during his victory lane interview. Here’s his explanation from his post race media availability:“This is an emotional win. It was my dad’s birthday last week. As we took the checkered flag and saw all the fans, I thought about him and how cool it is to continue the legacy he started here at this track. This is just a really special day.”

Image Credit: @nationwide88

This was Dale’s first win of the 2015 season, which nearly clinches the team’s spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. The win marks Dale’s 24th career Sprint Cup series victory. This was also Dale’s sixth win at Talladega Superspeedway. It was the 16th win for Earnhardts at the track in the Sprint Cup series. Overall, it marked the 21st victory across all racing series at the track. Now Dale and the team can move on to Kansas with a little less pressure on everyone.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

﻿Last Lap…﻿

One of the most important team members on any race team is the spotter. Dale’s spotter, TJ Majors is one of the best in the business. Part of his success with Dale can be attributed to their off track friendship. TJ is able to communicate information to Dale in a way that allows the driver to know what is going on around him without even looking in the mirror. It is definitely an advantage over teams whose driver and spotter haven’t meshed quite as well as those on the 88 team.

This week’s Last Lap is in honor of TJ. He managed to photobomb Dale Jr in Victory Lane. Kind of.

April 27/15 We’re almost at the end of the month of April, which is Child Abuse Prevention Awareness month. All throughout April, Dale has been driving with his signature skull racing gloves, in blue, in support of child abuse prevention. As each month passes, The Dale Jr Foundation auctions off a different set of his race worn gloves to the highest bidder, with proceeds going to that month’s charity. As a bonus for April, the highest bidder will also receive a pair of white gloves, because a production glitch prevented Dale from wearing the blue gloves at the beginning of the month. Both pairs will be signed and dated by Dale. Yet another great cause supported by the foundation! If you are interested in bidding, be sure to check out TDJF’s website for current auction links. www.thedalejrfoundation.org

Image Credit: @DaleJr

The only difference between a man and a boy is the size and price of his toys. Or so I’ve grown to learn. Dale has been working on his treehouse for months now. He found the plans online after being inspired by the TV show Treehouse Masters. Definitely a treehouse for grownups! Dale indicated some changes to his property recently, including removing his kart track. He hinted this treehouse may be one of the last ‘toys’ he’ll add to his property. Only time will tell, but until then here are a few images Dale has shared recently.

Image Credit: @DaleJr

Race RecapThe NASCAR Sprint Cup series took over Richmond International Raceway this weekend for the Toyota Owners 400. Dale Jr and crew chief Greg Ives concentrated more on race trim than qualifying setup during the Friday practice sessions. The end result was yet another mid pack qualifying result of P26. Steady rain showers Saturday forced NASCAR to postpone the race until Sunday. Just six laps after the start, Dale felt the effects of contact between Danica Patrick and Casey Mears. The nose of the 88 machine touched the rear of Patrick’s car. The damage to Dale’s Chevrolet proved to be minimal, although the contact caused Dale to drop a position from his starting spot to P27.

Image Credit: @NASCAR

Dale broke into the top 20 by lap 27 and into the top 15 by lap 40. Due to the dry, cooler conditions and the green racing surface, the sanctioning body required a competition caution at lap 50. By that time, Dale was up to P12. He lost three positions on pit road during that caution when the number 11 car of Denny Hamlin struck the tire in the 88 car’s front tire carrier’s hands. Luckily, no one was injured, but the mishap cost the team precious time on pit road.By the time the caution flew again on lap 127, Dale was back up to P12 after fighting a loose car for a majority of the run. He restarted 16th and continued to struggle with an ill handling car. Ives made several adjustments on subsequent cautions, and Dale was able to move forward on long runs. He ran a race high P8 on lap 245 after the team was able to tune the car in successfully. The caution flew again with fewer than 50 laps remaining. Dale made his final pit stop and restarted in P13.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

As usual at short tracks, the excitement was building as the remaining laps dwindled. Adding to the excitement, Dale and Tony Stewart made contact late with only 41 laps remaining. From the replay, it was difficult to assign fault. Stewart appeared to move around the track from one lane to another; not necessarily loose, just moving. He moved high while Dale was holding his line with a car in the outside lane. Stewart’s right front tire made contact with Dale’s left rear fender. Stewart suffered a cut tire and crashed, while Dale was able to continue to a 14th place finish. Here’s a look at the left rear of the 88 machine after the race.

Image Credit: @jeff_gluck

During a post race interview, Dale was asked what happened during the contact with Stewart. Dale replied, “You'll have to ask him. He hit me in the left rear quarter panel. I was as high as I could go.” Stewart, however, declined to comment after he left the infield care center. His words on the radio immediately following the incident were quite colorful, however, and seemed to point a finger at Dale. Oftentimes, after an incident like this, the two drivers will get in touch during the week. Dale and Tony have been friends for years. They will likely sit down for dinner and a beer to conclude it was a “racing deal”, as they usually do. Dale retains eighth place with 271 points in the drivers’ standings. He is now 86 points behind leader Kevin Harvick. Next week’s race is at one of Dale’s favorite tracks, the Talladega Superspeedway.

Image Credit: @_Carlton

Last Lap…A new entry in the #TBT album this week puts Dale’s parents on display from his earliest days. He was probably a toddler at the time, which could explain the expressions on his parents’ faces!

April 26/15 The NASCAR community rallied around Fox Sports anchor Steve Byrnes after he was diagnosed a second time with head and neck cancer in the fall of 2014. As a showing of support, the spring Bristol race was renamed the Food City 500 in Support of Steve Byrnes and Stand Up to Cancer. The hashtag #ByrnesStrong was displayed around the track, in the pits, and throughout the stands. Drivers carried Byrnes’ name above the passenger door and displayed SPB badges. Bristol Motor Speedway and Food City provided Byrnes’ family with a replica winner’s trophy bearing his name.

Image Credit: @NASCAR

Byrnes was humbled by the tremendous display of support. He was forced to follow “his” race from the Intensive Care Unit in the hospital in Charlotte, but he confirmed via Twitter that he was able to watch all the way to the finish. We know he saw it all based on his final Twitter reply to a fan who inquired. His response, “I went the distance”, immediately replaced the #ByrnesStrong hashtag when the news was announced of Byrnes’ passing on Tuesday, April 21, 2015, just one week after his 56th birthday. He left behind his wife of 22 years, Karen, and his 12 year old son Bryson. Shortly after we learned of his death, #IWentTheDistance trended worldwide. It is clear Byrnes touched lives throughout all of motorsports. It should be a goal of everyone’s to live #ByrnesStrong.

Image Credit: @NASCAR

Dale Jr’s response to Byrne’s passing was concise and fitting.

My hope is Steve was able to see how much he was loved & appreciated by so many. Rest easy friend. Prayers to his family. #ByrnesStrong

Race RecapDale was able to put the number 88 Mountain Dew DEWshine Chevrolet in P13 for the start of the race at the Last Great Coliseum known as Bristol Motor Speedway. Weather plagued the track all morning and delayed the race by an hour. As the Food City 500 in Support of Steve Byrnes and Stand Up to Cancer got underway, Dale advanced to 11th place before Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano wrecked together to bring out an early caution on lap 18. Rain took the track again and forced a four hour rain delay. Once racing resumed, Dale moved as high as P7 prior to a competition caution on lap 60. After the mandatory pit stop during the competition caution, Dale was forced to pit a second time due to a flat right rear tire. The unscheduled pit stop dropped the 88 car to two laps off the lead and at the rear of the field. Shortly after returning to the track, Dale was forced to pit another time for the same right rear tire issue. After the second unscheduled stop, Dale returned to the track four laps down and in P40. The race was only 125 laps old at that point, and the tire misfortune alluded to a long night ahead.In a similar fashion to the Texas race last week, Dale showed his prowess at passing car after car multiple times. He was able to pass the leaders on the track to earn one of his laps back the hard way. The team was able to take the wave around under the next caution on lap 168 to earn another lap back. Dale climbed as high as P20, yet was still mired two laps down. With no other wave around opportunities available, he was too far behind to even put himself in the Lucky Dog free pass position of the first car one lap down.Several fans were upset with Greg and the team for not allowing Dale to take any additional wave around opportunities. The bottom line on the issue is there were no more opportunities. The only way a wave around situation presents itself is if all the lead lap cars pit together. When that happens, any cars that are off the pace are allowed to drive around the track while the leaders are pitting and remain on the track the next time by, thereby waiving the opportunity for a yellow flag pit stop. If even a single lead lap car stays on the track to forego their pit stop, then all off pace cars must pit the next time by, whether they need to or not. It is a consequence of falling off the lead lap. For the remaining 150 laps of the race, at least one lead lap car stayed on the track under each subsequent caution. Greg would certainly have left Dale out on the track if the wave around was available and feasible. That is the standard strategy when any team is laps down to the leaders.By the time the checkered flag dropped, Dale advanced to P16 due to attrition. Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson also had strong cars, like Dale’s. They were held off by eventual race winner Matt Kenseth.

April 16/15 It was great to see cars on the track again after a week off for the Easter holiday. What a better way to return from the break than with some night racing? Fast cars, a fast track, and all the action under the lights at Texas Motor Speedway for the Duck Commander 500. Dale spent the off week enjoying the beach and water with his girlfriend Amy and their pups Junebug and Gus. Between the tropical getaway, the Easter holiday, and lots of sponsor obligations, Dale stayed busy like always.

Final practice
Image Credit: @nascar

Race RecapDale Jr and crew chief Greg Ives had a tough time tuning the car in for qualifying during the practice sessions. The end result was a mid pack qualifying result of P25. Dale eased the minds of the team and fans when he assured us the car had plenty of speed. He looked forward to driving up through the pack. Turns out it’s a good thing he likes to drive through the pack and is good at it; he got to show off those skills a couple of times in the race.Within the first 30 laps, Dale put the number 88 Nationwide Insurance Chevrolet in the top 10. During a caution shortly thereafter, a pit road mishap forced the team to pit a second time under caution: loose lug nuts were the culprit. The mistake put Dale in P30 for the restart. In about 60 laps, he drove back into the top 10 for a second time.Dale spent a majority of the race moving up and down through the top 10 and top five. On long green flag runs, the Nationwide car turned laps faster than the leaders. Dale was able to move up to P3 to challenge Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick for the race lead. At one point near the end of the race, Dale was able to advance to P2 for a short time before Harvick reclaimed the position on the final lap. Dale Jr fans couldn’t help but wonder: if the race had been just a little bit longer, would Dale have scored his first victory of 2015? We’ll never know, but his third place finish marks his seventh top 10 effort thus far. He scored 213 points and is now in seventh place in the Chase drivers’ standings. He was able to improve his position by one place this week and is 93 points behind points leader Harvick.

March 31/15 Finally a full week back home for most of the teams! Dale spent the time fulfilling sponsor obligations, signing autographs, and trying to woo his new puppy Gus away from his girlfriend Amy. I’m not sure how the wooing went, but I know several autographs were signed and new commercials were filmed. Excellent! Can’t wait to see the end results!

Image credit: @_Carlton

Race RecapTo paraphrase Dale Jr: sometimes you’re the windshield and sometimes you’re the bug. This week, the 88 car was definitely the bug. Murphy’s Law struck the team blow after blow: if anything could go wrong, it did.

Dale qualified 14th and was able to drive into the top five early in the race. He broke into the top 10 by lap 18, the top five by lap 38, and a race high P4 on lap 40. After the first pit stop, Dale radioed the crew to report a loose wheel. The team kept him on track until the next caution roughly 20 laps later; the repairs under caution dropped him to P29. Dale wheeled the Diet Mtn Dew Chevrolet back up through the field in short order. He was running in P21 when another caution was thrown. He reported a broken shifter under the yellow and made a pit stop for repairs. Dale drove back up to P23 before violent vibrations in the car caused another shifter issue, forcing another long pit stop. Restarting in P27 on lap 171 of 500, Dale reported shifter issues a third time during the next caution on lap 181. He was able to restart 24th on lap 214 after yet another round of shifter repairs. Once the shifter issues were resolved, we hoped for a calmer last half of the race. That hope was left unfulfilled: a multi car wreck collected the 88 when Dale was unable to evade the accordion effect carnage in front of him. The nose of the car was damaged enough to send Dale to the garage area for repairs. Not to be deterred, the team replaced the radiator, removed the fenders, bumper and hood, and sent Dale back out on track 47 laps down. Dale was able to climb as high as P36 by the time the checkered flag was thrown. The team left Martinsville ninth place in the points, 91 points behind Kevin Harvick in first place.After the race, Dale tweeted it “was definitely my most enjoyable 36th place finish”. I’m glad he enjoyed it, because I think I was channeling all the frustration he didn’t display. That was a tough race to watch as a Dale Jr fan, but the comeback without the front end got a big cheer from the crowd.Here’s a sequential montage of the car throughout the race from an undamaged body, through a shifter repair pit stop, then the front end damage, and finally to how the car looked sans most of the front body work.

The car ended up pretty ugly to say the least. To leave a better image in your mind, here’s one of USA Today reporter Jeff Gluck’s infamous Quiet Track photos. This one is of Martinsville after the action. A serene juxtaposition from the on track action earlier in the day.

Image Credit: @jeff_gluck

Last Lap…This week’s throwback Thursday picture on Twitter makes me wonder something: Do you think the little boy in that photo would believe he’d eventually sweep the two 2014 races at the same track where his daddy had a scary crash?

March 31/15 Dale Jr, Amy, and the crew were able to spend the week in between the last two West Coast Swing races back in North Carolina. Gus the Wonder Pup got to fly back to the East Coast with Dale and Amy, but the red eye flight wore the little guy out. @nascarcasm captioned this one “Downward-facing Dog”.

Image credit: @DaleJr

Some Dale Jr fans may know that he’s having the old Metrolina Speedway sign restored. He’s seeded his old quarter mile dirt track on his property and plans to install the sign at the entrance. The effect will mimic that of the lost speedways around the country. It promises to be quite a sight when it’s complete! To learn more about the historic Metrolina track, you can visit the Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrolina_Speedway

Image credit: @DaleJr

Dale spent the week recording promos and commercials for Bristol Motor Speedway and Mtn. Dew. He stayed busy until the trip out to California where he and Amy were able to meet some celebrities over the weekend, like Dwight Yoakam. They also met several Bravolebrities from Bravo TV: Million Dollar Listing LA realtors Josh Altman and Heather Bilyeu along with Vanderpump Rules stars Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix. Here’s hoping Amy’s love of all things Bravo turns some of those folks into NASCAR fans!

Image credit: @nationwide88

Race RecapDale qualified 17th for the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA. He slapped the wall after qualifying during the second practice but brushed it off saying, “Now it’s perfect”. It wasn’t quite race winning perfect, but he did manage to race near the front of the field all day. The team adjusted the handling on the car throughout the race and stayed ahead of any track changes. An uneventful race came to a head at the tail end of the day with multiple green-white-checkered attempts. Dale was in P3 when a caution came out forcing the first GWC attempt. Differing pit strategies mixed up the field for the restart. Crew chief Greg Ives called Dale to the pits for two tires and a splash of fuel. Dale restarted in P5 and was marred behind Greg Biffle’s self described “dump truck”. Biffle was unable to restart quickly on his old tires with his poorly handling car. Dale dropped back to P10 after he lost all his momentum. Another caution was thrown at that point, forcing another GWC attempt. Dale had excellent restarts all day long and was able to gain four positions in the final two laps before finishing sixth behind the white knuckled racing of Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, and eventual race winner Brad Keselowski.

Image credit: @nationwide88

Last Lap…Dale’s #TBT pic this week is from his time at the tracks with his dad’s Busch series team. He must have figured out a few secrets for his eventual two Busch series championships!

March 16/15 The second of the three West Coast Swing races is in Phoenix this year. Dale Jr, his girlfriend Amy, and some other team members stayed in Las Vegas an extra night to have some fun, then enjoyed a leisurely road trip southeast to the Valley of the Sun. Along the way, Dale was able to check a few items off his bucket list.

Dale and Amy were able to pick up the new puppy addition to their home. A big ole JRNation welcome to Gus! Dale tweeted the background for the name Gus last week: Captain Augustus (Gus) McCrae from the 1989 miniseries Lonesome Dove. Gus joins Dale’s other dog Junebug. All together now: Awwwww!

Image Credit: @Amy_Reimann

Race RecapDale qualified in P16 for the CampingWorld.com 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. The last time he started 16th at PIR he brought home an 8th place finish. That result was not to be repeated today, as a right rear tire failure on lap 181 caused the #88 machine to hit the wall. The hard contact with the outside wall caused terminal damage not repairable at the track. The timing of the accident put Dale in 43rd with the first DNF (did not finish) of the season. Notably, it is also the season’s first finish outside the top five. Dale’s car was strong prior to the tire failure, and he was steadily gaining positions in the Nationwide Insurance Chevrolet with a race high P11. Dale was penalized during a right-sides-only pit stop under caution on lap 116 for a pit lane speeding violation, which mired him back in 28th. Crew Chief Greg Ives made a wise move while Dale was serving the stop and go penalty: change the left side tires as well and pack the Chevy full of fuel. Dale was able to climb six spots to P22 when the tire failure occurred on lap 181. A fire in the wheel well area necessitated Dale’s exit from the car after it came to a rest on the inside apron. He was able to walk uninjured to the infield care center and was subsequently evaluated and released.Goodyear determined the right rear tire failed due to a melted bead caused by high brake heat. After meeting with the team in the garage and attempting to unsuccessfully return to the track, Dale ultimately blamed the team and not Goodyear for the trouble. According to Dale, the car’s set up led to him “leaning” too much on the right rear, which caused the tire to fail. The P43 finish dropped Dale four places in the points standings to sixth with 126 total points thus far.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

There are still plenty of races left in the season and one more in the West Coast Swing. The next destination is Fontana, California, for the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway. Last year, Dale qualified P15 and brought home a P12 finish. He will drive the wheels off his Chevy to attempt a win at the next race!

Image Credit: @_Carlton

Last Lap…For the latest Throwback Thursday entry, Dale treated us to a great photo of him from 1996 at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville in Tennessee. Is it just me, or does it appear that the ‘1’ digit looks like it was added to the car as an afterthought? Traveling teams have to be prepared to alter their car numbers if another driver has already entered their primary number. I bet someone had already spoken for ‘3’, so Dale’s team turned it into ‘31’. Great photo!

March 10/15 The week before the race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Earnhardt fans were treated to some goodies. First, Spike TV aired the 'I am Dale Earnhardt' biopic packed full of unseen clips and interviews. That documentary was an unexpected gem and will live on DVRs for a long time. Dale, his older sister Kelley Miller, and their older brother Kerry were pleasantly overwhelmed with positive messages on Twitter. Not many people can truly sympathize with the siblings; I can’t imagine having such an iconic person as a parent. There is still a lot of love from the fans surrounding that whole family.

The next goodie was Dale letting us know his future puppy plans. Many fans mourned the passing of his beloved dog Killer a couple months ago. Dale let us know via Twitter he’s thinking of getting another dog sometime soon and has already settled on the name Gus. As they say, the best laid plans often go awry, so we will wait and see what the final outcome is with the new puppy and name. Though, the idea of a female puppy named Gus makes me smile. It would be reminiscent of Johnny Cash’s A Boy Named Sue.

The last of the week’s goodies was one of Dale’s Twitter Q&A rounds. After a week of sponsor obligations and meetings with Greg Ives at the race shop, Dale Jr hopped on Twitter to answer questions while airborne between North Carolina and Nevada. I compiled the answers to some of my favorite questions here, although there were many more which can be found on his Twitter page.

Q: @dhall4013: What is the most cherished piece of racing memorabilia you own?

A: Any of my dad’s driving suits.

Q:@PaulMoultrup: Who's the better cook?

A: Amy is a hell of a cook. I'm a mad scientist in the kitchen.

Q: @sharonsims1957: Bucket list. Top three?

A: 1) Drive for JRM one full year 2) Retire happy 3) Travel the world

Q: @CNorwood_PC: Any chance of racing in a truck race this year?

A: We got that team. 👍👍 Never say never...

Q: @AaronGrimbler: What's your favorite TV show?

A: Saturday Night Live is the standard. I miss The Office. I watch Watch What Happens Live with Amy a lot.

Q: @SethRary215: What do you prefer, hunting or fishing?

A: Easy. Bow hunting.

Q: @ss_24: When do you think your Dad would have eventually retired?

A: Hard to guess. I'd say no more than another year or two.

Q: @jblohse: If you raced in the 1970's, what would your look have been?

A: Bell bottom jeans. Hair like 1975 Jeff Lynne from ELO.

Q: @keyper13: What race would you like to win that you haven't yet?

A: The World 600 @CLTMotorSpdwy

Q: @24_JG_24: A famous person you would like to meet?

A: @tomhanks

Q: @billy196842: What about a road course in one of the last 10 races each year?

A: How ‘bout no road courses, replaced with short tracks?

Q: @raider_wayne: Think you'll ever start a Cup team?

A: No current plans. That's a HUGE responsibility. I got a full plate as it is.

Q: @Ry_24: Any chance you'll drive the 8 car again!?

A: It was hard on our supporters to switch from 8 to 88. I figure no more switchin’.

Q: @Maldonado615: When you are in Vegas what is your favorite table game to spend a little money??

A: Roulette. It's such a simple game.

Q: @skittles868: What's the dumbest thing you ever bought?

A: Amy would say golf simulator. I'd say some cars I've owned.

Image credit: @_Carlton

More Inspection Woes?Once at the track, Dale and Greg worked hard to dial in the handling of the #88 Nationwide Insurance Chevrolet SS. Prior to attempting group qualifying, the crew rolled the car through inspection. The hiccups weren’t as prevalent this week as they were the past two weeks, thankfully. Some teams still had issues, but all were able to successfully make it to the grid in time to qualify. Let’s hope this positive change will continue at the rest of the tracks.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Race RecapDale qualified fourth for the Kobalt Tools 400 at Las Vegas to continue his streak of good starting positions this season. Fans were hoping for a great finishing spot based on Dale’s eighth place average finish at Las Vegas since driving for Hendrick Motorsports. He did not disappoint and delivered a final fourth place, adding a third top five finish in the first three races of 2015. Dale battled the leaders throughout most of the race, leading a total of two laps and maintaining a running position inside the top five for a majority of the race. As the race progressed, Dale was able to successfully make track bar adjustments from inside the car to keep up with the changing track conditions; as the day went on, the track got slicker and slicker in the hot Nevada sun. Greg and the crew continued to work with Dale and make other handling adjustments on pit road to stay on top of the slick track.A late race gamble did not pay off, as Greg called for a two tire green flag pit stop when the other leaders took four on the same round of stops. It was a valid attempt to take and hold the lead, but an issue with the track bar adjustments combined with tires caused Dale to fall back to his final position of fourth. Without the two tire stop, Dale would not have had the chance to take and maintain the lead, so I was happy to see Greg take that chance for the team. Next we head to Phoenix International Raceway to continue the western swing in the early season.

Image Credit: @nationwide88

Last Lap…Dale shared the following images the day before the new documentary about his dad aired. It is a collage of Dale and his daddy, Dale Sr. You can see Dale Sr in his infamous yellow Wrangler firesuit alongside present day Dale Jr modelling the same firesuit, plus a bonus photo of an adorable young Dale Jr with his rookie driver dad. I always love to see what Dale comes up with when he’s feeling a bit nostalgic. This offering does not disappoint and also ties in nicely with his favorite memorabilia answer in the Q&A.

Tried on daddy's 1979 rookie firesuit a while back. Smelled every bit of 36 years old.

March 3/15 After last week’s marathon of unexpected headlines, who would have guessed this week would put up a title challenge? The week started off with an unusual winter storm that hit North Carolina, which left Dale and Amy with no heat and burst pipes in their home upon their return from Daytona.

Dale didn’t let that deter him from having a successful test session at Atlanta the Thursday before the race. He and Greg Ives had their first opportunity to try out the new rules package at a non-superspeedway track. The new package includes the following, at a minimum: in-car track bar adjustments, fewer horsepower, and a smaller spoiler. NASCAR intended the changes to make the cars slower and increase pack racing. In an interesting twist, cars were practicing at speeds faster than last year’s pole speeds. To my layman’s eyes, the cars don’t appear to be any slower at all.

For the second week in a row, we saw another strange group qualifying result: many teams were unable to successfully clear pre qualifying inspection with enough time to get on track for the first qualifying session. Two of the drivers who had issues with that are Dale’s Hendrick Motor Sports teammates, Jeff Gordon and eventual race winner Jimmie Johnson. I believe a combination of the new rules package and teams bending the rules as far as possible contributed to the inspection issues. I foresee fewer problems as we progress further into the race season.

Continuing the strong run from last week, the driver/crew chief combo of Dale Jr and Greg has again proven to be a great match. Dale and Greg seem to have picked up right where Dale and Steve Letarte left off at the end of the 2014 season. The excitement builds as we head to warmer temps in Las Vegas next week!

Image credit: @_Carlton

Race RecapDale Jr qualified in ninth position for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The start of the race was delayed slightly due to morning rain showers and foggy conditions. Once the race was underway, Dale fought a loose racecar as the track was still a bit moist. It is true NASCAR will make use of rain tires, but not at the oval tracks, to my knowledge. NASCAR threw the standard competition caution at lap 25 to assess the track condition and give teams a chance to make any adjustments necessary due to the weather. The #88 pit crew made the first of all their great stops all day long and helped keep Dale near the front of the pack for the duration of the race. In fact, Dale ran in the top five for a majority of the race, challenging for the lead a few times. A restart late in the race gave Dale his last opportunity to steal the lead from Johnson. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be after Dale ran over a piece of debris that knocked a hole in the nose of his Chevrolet SS. With a third place finish, Dale scores his first top five at Atlanta Motor Speedway since 2008 and his ninth top five there overall, according to his communications manager Mike Davis.Here is what Dale had to say about that restart, in his own words, after the race:“We had a great car today, just not good enough to beat Jimmie. I got on the outside of him there on that last restart, but I knew down in Turns 3 and 4 that I didn’t have the preferred line. He’s pretty quick around the bottom and we ran over something on the race track. It knocked the grille out of it and hurt the aerodynamics there with a few laps to go.“I think we could’ve raced Kevin a little bit, but it was pretty much over with when that happened. I’m real fortunate we didn’t have another caution because I don’t think we would’ve done well with that grille knocked out.”Dale brought the #88 Kelley Blue Book Chevrolet home in third place. He even complimented Greg on his cheerleading skills saying, “He’s a pretty decent cheerleader, too, for myself and the team.”

Image Credit: @Hendrick88Team

Driven to Give Gloves: March

Dale, like many drivers, is well known for his charitable contributions. A signature item of Dale’s is his Alpinestars skeleton racing gloves. The Dale Jr Foundation has extended the Driven to Give Gloves initiative to raise money each month during the 10 month race season. February’s gloves were red in support of Congenital Heart Defect Awareness. During the month of March, Dale will wear orange gloves in honor of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness. At the end of the month, the race worn gloves will be available for purchase. Please visit Dale Jr Foundation to bid on several one of a kind items up for auction, including February’s red gloves.

Image Credit: @Amy_Reimann

Last Lap…This week’s #TBT pic wasn’t a family photo. Instead, Dale shared a photo of some NASCAR legends in all their throwback glory.

Feb 24/15 What a week!! All the drama, all the news to feed the media machine… Whew! Time to dive in and find out how Dale did on, and off, the track.

Qualifying & The Sprint Unlimited

After surviving the restrictor plate, group qualifying debacle and a 9th place finish in the Sprint Unlimited qualifying race, JRNation was floored when we learned the post qualifying inspection results: the left front of the #88 machine was too low. Driver #88 had to start at the back of the field in his Budweiser Duel race. Dale tweeted to us his frustrations in the form of an angry emoji. He then went on to bolster his crew chief Greg Ives and the rest of the 88 team. Fans poured on support, as well, with our encouraging messages. In the end Dale was excited for the challenge to drive from the rear to the front in as few laps as possible. With all his talent, there was no doubt he could do it. Alas, it was funny to see him tweet this nugget:

He proved to us again just how good he is at the superspeedways. By lap seven of the first of two 60 lap Budweiser Duels, Dale drove from his P25 starting position to P10. By lap 15, he was up to P5, and as early as lap 35, he put the #88 car in the lead. The #20 of Matt Kenseth put up a strong fight, but Dale managed to take the lead for the final time on lap 43. Even with a late race restart, Dale proved fastest by edging out both Jeff Gordon and Joey Logano for the victory.

Image credit: NASCAR

Daytona 500Dale’s win in his Duel race earned him a P3 starting position in the 57th running of the Daytona 500. After running in the top three for much of the first 100 laps with his Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon, Dale took the lead on lap 114. With the help of master spotter extraordinaire T.J. Majors, Dale led for a total of 32 consecutive laps as he made the #88 machine high, wide, and handsome. Some would say the car was "JRNation wide" during those 32 laps. On a restart with 19 laps to go, an unfortunate late race lane change lost him the draft and eventually mired him back as far as P17 with only 10 laps to go. In eight laps, the two time and defending Daytona 500 champion, picked off nine competitors to take P8 as a late race caution came out. Dale charged to the front during the green-white-checkered finish, and made the brilliant moves necessary to move up five positions in those final two laps. He managed to successfully finish in the same P3 as he started after a last lap caution flew.This is his fourth consecutive top 3 finish. In fact, Dale has finished P3 or better in eight of his 16 career Daytona 500 starts, per his communications guru Mike Davis. Those are some very good numbers! No wonder some Dale Jr. fans refer to it as Daletona!For anyone concerned about how new crew chief Greg Ives and crew would gel with Dale, Dale has the following to say about that: “The whole team is in great form. Good communication. No issues. Smooth. That's impressive to me out of the gate. Something to build on. We have some new over the wall guys, a few new engineers, a new car chief, a new crew chief. Every one of them were prepared for Daytona.” To me, that sounds like a happy driver!

Image credit: @_Carlton

Last Lap…I don’t know about you fans, but I love to see what new gem Dale will tweet each week for Throwback Thursday or #TBT. This week, he dug deep in the photo albums and shared a childhood fishing trip with his dad, sister and cousins!

Feb 17/15 Most NASCAR fans around the world can recognize the famed Harley J. Earl trophy at a glance. Dale Jr. has hoisted the coveted trophy above his head twice in victory lane after his Daytona 500 wins. Inspired by Dale Jr’s love of racing history, I decided to research Harley J. Earl to learn about the famed man. I also learned a few nuggets about the trophy I didn’t already know.

Earl was a pioneer both at General Motors and in the field of design. He was the first in the industry to be named Head of Design as a professional title. As a pioneer, he was the first to introduce the “concept car” for use both in design and in marketing. In fact, he began Project Opal that eventually became the Chevrolet Corvette. In honor of that role, he is colloquially known as the Father of the Corvette. The Firebird One prototype that sits atop the Daytona 500 trophy is another of Earl’s innovative designs.

If I ever get the chance to tour Daytona International Speedway, I will certainly go visit the Harley J. Earl trophy at the DAYTONA 500 Experience. I’ll be sure to look for names like Dale Earnhardt, Jr, of course, among others: Dale Earnhardt, AJ Foyt, Mario Andretti, Lee Petty, Richard Petty, Darrell Waltrip, Michael Waltrip, Kevin Harvick, the list goes on and on!

When you watch the 2015 Daytona 500 Champion hoist the trophy in victory lane, you’ll be able to share some facts with your family and friends about the man who shares his name with that notorious award. Or at least get a few questions right on Trivia Crack.

Ah, the Offseason!Feb 8/15 I had a hard time deciding what specifically to write about concerning Dale Jr. and the offseason. The man never slows down, so I picked only a handful of his activities and shenanigans over the past couple months that stood out to me. We call it 'Silly Season' for a reason, after all.

Let’s start with the transition of crew chief Steve Letarte from the pit box to the broadcasting booth. Stevie and Dale worked together tremendously. I think Dale transformed as a driver because of Steve’s coaching ability. I’m certainly going to miss him atop the box, but I’m excited to see how well Dale and Greg Ives hit it off. Greg is moving up from Chase Elliot’s no. 9 JRMotorsports Xfinity team, which is co-owned by Dale. It’s safe to say, he and Greg aren’t strangers. They also had some coveted track time together at the end of 2014, which went very well, according to both. No pressure, Greg!!

Who remembers Dale’s spontaneous Thanksgiving week road trip from North Carolina to Colorado with another of his JRMotorsports drivers, Regan Smith? Dale promised he’d help move Regan’s truck cross country, and Dale’s a man of his word. The Twittersphere was abuzz as we followed their overnight journey. They made excellent time and even managed to make a good spotter joke referring to Dale’s Sprint Cup Series spotter TJ Majors and his “Door. Bumper. Clear.” radio chatter. Regan spent too long in the passing lane, so Dale "door. bumper. cleared" him back into the driving lane. Could spotting be yet another possible addition to Dale’s resume besides “retired dealership service mechanic, former backup fullback for the Mooresville Blue Devils varsity soccer team, and aspiring competition BBQ Pitmaster”?

Diehard Dale Jr fans are well aware of his sweetheart Amy Reimann. They’re a great match and we were thrilled to see that Mamaw Earnhardt made Amy her very own ornament for the Earnhardt matriarch’s Christmas tree. That’s a pretty clear message: welcome to the family, Amy! We hope you stay awhile! And we also now know Dale will dogsit for Amy whenever she joins her friends for a Girls’ Night Out. That’s a good man to keep around!

Speaking of Christmas, it was very sweet to see “Uncle Jr” give his toddler nephew Wyatt the entirety of Dale’s childhood Matchbox car collection. Talk about Little Boy Heaven!! Wyatt was over the moon, I imagine. He has enough cars now to stage his own Sprint Cup, Xfinity, and Camping World Truck Series races all at the same time. Lucky guy!

Since Dale joined Twitter after his 2nd Daytona 500 win in 2014, he’s grown to really enjoy social media. And boy, does social media love him right back. Dale’s Throwback Thursday (#TBT) photos on Twitter routinely make NASCAR’s main website page, and for good reason. Dale’s love of and respect for the history of racing is well known, and those photos give him a chance to show it. He tweeted pictures of some old NASCAR yearbooks, which gave me an idea: what if Dale created his own museum showcasing the history of the sport? Not an Earnhardt-centric museum, but the entire, sweeping history. Could you imagine walking into the museum 30 years from now and getting an impromptu tour from Dale Jr himself? Wow. That would just be amazing. Hey, a girl can dream, right?

Dale’s love of history even inspired a means for fans to cope with the offseason. He tweeted about the first flag-to-flag televised NASCAR race, the 1979 Daytona 500. He said it was his all time favorite race. You may have heard of it, if you haven’t seen it. It’s the race with the brawl between Cale Yarborough and the Allison brothers, Donnie and Bobby. It was the fight where Bobby claimed Cale’s face was beating against his fist. Pure NASCAR history. A few of my Twitter friends and I cued up that race on YouTube and live tweeted it together. So, thank you for that, Dale. It lived up to the hype all these years later.

The offseason also brought news for JRMotorsports along with the no. 88 Cup team. JRM is expanding into the Camping World Truck Series, which could potentially give Dale Jr his first opportunity to drive one of the NCWTS trucks. Dale has commented before about his desire to give those trucks a try, and now’s his chance. As for the 88 team, we’ve known for months about Nationwide moving from the 2nd tier series sponsor to one of Dale’s primary sponsors in the Sprint Cup Series. With the National Guard moving on as a sponsor, it’s nice to see Nationwide fill that void. The new paint scheme on the car and the new firesuit on the driver both look racey! However, with the lack of offseason testing, we’ll have to wait for SpeedWeeks to see the new colors on the track.

That covers a bit of what Dale has been up to in the past few months. But what I really want to know is this: Is it time for Daytona yet?

Feb 7/15 Laura was born and raised in Southern Indiana, just a few miles away from a ¼-mile dirt race track. Her father and brother raced street stocks at the track, and Laura fell in love with the noise, action, pomp, and circumstance of it all. In fact, one of her proudest bragging rights comes from the stock car finish where her brother placed higher than a young Jeff Gordon. Jeff Gordon!! Curiously, her mother picked up a ball of Indiana red clay that found its way into the grandstands one night, propelled by a wheel on the track; she’s displayed that red clay in a curio cabinet for decades now. Racing Pride!

Laura’s been watching NASCAR since she can remember (late 1970s). Some of her fondest memories are watching with her dad at home as legends battled it out on the track. Several trips to the Indianapolis 500 in the ‘80s & ‘90s cemented her love of the experience of “big time” race day. Fast forward to her early 20s when she enlisted in the US Air Force, and her love of racing never wavered. While she was stationed in South Korea for a year during her 10-year military service, her dad recorded and mailed her the Busch & Cup series races, so she didn’t miss out. She still has those recordings and treasures them.

A young Laura learned which drivers to like, and not like, from her dad. She rooted for Darrell Waltrip and grumbled at Rusty Wallace’s successes. She rooted for Dale Earnhardt and didn’t know what to think of that young Rainbow Warrior Jeff Gordon; that guy who once raced her brother at her home track. She paid attention to Big E’s son, Dale Jr., when he made his full-time Busch series debut in 1998. At that moment, a life-long fan was born! Once Laura discovered how close in age they were, she followed Dale Jr’s career from the Busch to the Cup series; from Dale Earnhardt, Inc. to Hendrick Motorsports, from a driver to the owner of his own race team. She’s a proud member of Jr Nation. She especially enjoys watching Dale Jr. discover and develop new talent, as he ushers in the next generations of NASCAR drivers.

After her military service, Laura settled down in Florida and married her current husband. Outside of racing, Laura enjoys traveling with her family & towing their camper across the country. She also enjoys beach time on the beautiful Florida Gulf Coast as often as possible. She’s been lucky enough to attend races at Phoenix International Raceway and Talladega Superspeedway. Many other tracks remain on her bucket list, though. Also, when inspired, she’s been known to knit her own socks. Just because she can.